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Ashurbarnipal's 80 gallon

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Ok, so I got this used on Craigslist for 50 bucks. It has no cracks and really no scratches. I've only had about 25 gallons in it so far, and I'm thinking I'll resilicone it as soon as I clean and remove the other divider and spare overflow boxes (took one of each out after taking pics)

It is pre drilled

It's kind of a mess right now, but I think I can remove the paint and dividers and clean it up into a pretty decent tank.

It might be a good idea, since you have to remove those dividers, to replace the outer seal in that tank. That way you don't have to worry about a leaky tank

I did that with my 90 gallon that I bought used. I even re-sealed the overflow. I'm glad I did.

If you take your time to do the research FIRST, you can successfully set-up and keep ANY type of aquarium with ease."Not using a quarantine tank is like playing Russian roulette. Nobody wins the game, some people just get to play longer than others." - Anthony CalfoFishless CycleCycling with FishMarine Aquarium Info [URL="http://saltwater.aquaticcommunity.com/"]

There are two different seals or applications of silicone used. The inner seal is the one that holds the glass together and is inbetween the glass where it joins together. The outseal is the one that is placed on top of that to give the inner seal some more strenght and make sure it will not leak.

This below thread explains how to replace the outer seal, just incase I'm not explaining it well enough

If you take your time to do the research FIRST, you can successfully set-up and keep ANY type of aquarium with ease."Not using a quarantine tank is like playing Russian roulette. Nobody wins the game, some people just get to play longer than others." - Anthony CalfoFishless CycleCycling with FishMarine Aquarium Info [URL="http://saltwater.aquaticcommunity.com/"]

So, I could really use some advice about my sump, since I've never set one up before. I've been reading for the last week or so on sumps, but there are still some things I don't quite get.

The hole on the tank is drilled almost exactly at the top of the water level, and I'm thinking of doing a 30-40 gallon plastic tub as a sump, so I'm wondering two things:

What kind of pump/plumbing do I need? I was thinking a 1000 gph pump for the return and I'm wondering how one controls the water level in the return so there's enough excess space for the drainage line should the return pump fail. I've heard check valves mentioned, but don't fully get them.

The other question is, how important is it that the baffles be water tight? All the rubber tubs I'm looking at have very uneven surfaces which would prove difficult to make watertight. I'm wanting to do something along the lines of this: http://www.melevsreef.com/acrylics/sumps/f/sump_f.html

Natural Reef Aquariums, by John H. Tullock, Microcosm Ltd. Publisher - One of my favorite reef books to recommend to the new hobbyist, as Tullock covers plumbing, temperature control, lighting and filtration systems in detail, and follows it by step-by-step instructions on how to set up the aquarium and establish a living reef by using live rock and live sand. What makes this book different is the detailed description of different conditions in reef regions like the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Reefs with his recommendations on how to simulate a specific region in your aquarium. The author stresses using natural processes in aquariums, and limits equipment as much as he can in his descriptions.

All you need to know about plumbing a sump Ash. A check valve only permits a fluid to go in one direction. A check valve prevents back flow.

Dave

When a finger points to the moon, the imbecile looks at the finger.

Omnia mutantur nihil interit.

The more you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go

The only drawback to using a plastic tub is that you won't be able to effectively put in baffles.

If you want a sump, I would suggest keeping an eye open for a used tank to make into a sump. Something like a 30 to 55 gallon tank would be best (nothing smaller).

I would also suggest that you have all of your equipment purchased before you set up your sump. That way you can double check the size of the compartments to make sure everything fits in place.

When picking out your return pump you will have to keep in mind you will lose about 100 gph for each foot of height on the return line. You will also loose some flow based on each elbow on the return line a well. So if you want 1000 gph of flow you will most likely need a 1400 gph pump to get around 1000 gph of flow in the tank. Once you have that figured out, you can then size the drain line in order to make sure it can handle that much flow. The below should help you figure that out.

If you take your time to do the research FIRST, you can successfully set-up and keep ANY type of aquarium with ease."Not using a quarantine tank is like playing Russian roulette. Nobody wins the game, some people just get to play longer than others." - Anthony CalfoFishless CycleCycling with FishMarine Aquarium Info [URL="http://saltwater.aquaticcommunity.com/"]